


Dear Cadet

by ambivalentlangst



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Cuban Lance, Garrison Hunk, Garrison Lance, Gen, Hunk's Moms - Freeform, Non-Native English Speaker Lance, Pen Pals, Pre-Garrison Hunk, Pre-Garrison Lance, Purposeful Grammatical Errors, Samoan Hunk, Written Pre-Season Six, surfer Hunk, use of aliases
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-30
Updated: 2018-07-30
Packaged: 2019-06-18 01:40:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15474672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ambivalentlangst/pseuds/ambivalentlangst
Summary: Dear Yellow,I don’t really know what I’m doing with this? I mean, I get it’s to get us used to everything, but mostly I’m just doing this cause my mom is worried that I won’t have any friends at the Garrison, so I figure this is alright. I hope this works out okay. I'm willing to give it a try.From,Blue





	Dear Cadet

**Author's Note:**

> Created for the [Sharpshooter E-Zine](https://sharpshooterzine.tumblr.com) which is free and can be found [here!](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeoDMcYcurG1wUHiGSrA3Lzs3MWDFbAlq20iPxWCKVTAr5kDw/viewform)

Dear Yellow,

I don’t really know what I’m doing with this? I mean, I get it’s to get us used to everything, but mostly I’m just doing this cause my mom is worried that I won’t have any friends at the Garrison, so I figure this is alright. I’m just glad you’re okay with this being anonymous because I really wasn’t prepared to meet up with anybody, or even just to recognize a name. That aside, I guess I should tell you a little about me? That’s what the starter prompts suggested, anyway.

 

I’m a guy, seventeen. English isn’t my first language, but I only really have an accent when I cuss, which makes my mom happy. She’s the sort that thinks we should only share our culture around the house to be more American or some shit, which kinda sucks when you see everyone else flaunting it, but she does a lot for me, so I’m not about to argue. Are you okay with me cussing? I don’t want this to be awkward. Tell me if it’s awkward when you write back. From here, I guess it’s pretty obvious, but I like space. The ocean’s cool and all and it’s my first love, but there’s something really awesome about going places nobody’s even considered possible, isn’t there? Of course, I don’t know if you’re a pilot, that stuff wasn’t on the form the Garrison sent us, but you’re going to the same place, so I figure it’s not a bad guess. I have to go to swim practice, but I hope this works out alright. I’m willing to try.

From,

Blue

  
  


_ Dear Blue, _

_ You’re fine cussing! Just don’t let my moms find out. Well, you don’t have a way to talk to them anyway, but whatever. They’re great though, don’t get me wrong. Sorry if this is something you don’t want to do? If you want to stop, you know, just tell me. I’m sure the Garrison can find somebody else to do this with me, but between me and you, you sound fun. I mean, I kind of grew up learning English and Samoan side by side so it’s nice to know I have somebody who understands. I like the ocean too, surfing especially. My moms got me a new board for my birthday, which kind of sucks since I’m going to be going to the Garrison, but it’ll be waiting for me when I get back. They promised. I at least know that my little sister can’t touch it since she can’t even lift it. I guess I’ll introduce myself too? Here goes. _

 

_ I’m a guy too, also seventeen. I like surfing, like I told you, cooking, and engineering. I’m actually not going to be a pilot, and I can’t say that I care too much about space. I just like tinkering, and thinking about how much work a rocket will need is amazing. I want to work on those and to do that, I have to go to the Garrison. I also like the the more science-y element behind it all? I realize it probably won’t be my main purpose, but I’d like to help whatever scientist is on board with analytics of supernovae and whatever samples we get and stuff. I’m not really sure how I’m supposed to end this and this still feels pretty awkward, so I guess I should pick a starter for our next letters: do you have any siblings? Thanks for doing this. _

_ Sincerely, _

_ Yellow _

  
  


Dear Yellow,

I have tons of siblings, actualy, and a niece and a nephew too. I am younger though, so I’m usually the one to be stealing things that they don’t really want me touching. My sister that is oldest is married, hence the kids. Her husband’s pretty cool, but he eats a lot of my mom’s potatoes on Thanksgiving, so I’m still adjusting to him if we’re being honest.

 

Sorry if I freaked you out, I’m still getting used to this whole thing, but don’t worry, I won’t make you get another partner for this. It’s kind of hard to find somebody else who knows how to surf, anyway. I used to be in the water all the time back in Varadero, but now I’m in the middle of a city and there’s no ocean nearby. Oh wel, I’ll get back to it someday, right? It’s cool that you speak another langauge too, I wasn’t expecting it, and that makes me feel better about this. I think my mom wants me to come help with the kids while she makes dinner, so I have to cut this short. Sorry if my English is off at all, I’m not sure I’ll be able to get my ESL teacher to proofread this before she leaves for vacation, so it might get sent out with extra mistakes. For next time, what do you like to cook? If we ever meet face to face, I’ll be your taste tester.

From,

Blue

  
  


_ Dear Blue,  _

_ I like cooking anything, and while challenges are nice and all, lasagna’s my go to. You get to mess around with the flavor and everything, what you want to put in the sauce and how to flavor the meat, but you mostly get the same result. For some reason, I just think that’s kinda cool. As for the potatoes, I’m with you. My mom’s hashbrowns are to kill for because she always gets them just crispy enough to have a crunch without burning them, and she never makes enough. I fight my sister a lot for the last few bites if my other mom doesn’t get into it with our backs turned. _

 

_ You know, I didn’t think it would bug me this much leaving for the Garrison, lack of surfing aside, but it does. I don’t think I’m suited for the desert. It’s one thing to be hot when you can run off to the ocean after school, which really sucks sometimes (school, not having the ocean easily accessible), but there’s just gonna be sand and the Garrison itself, so I hope things go alright. I’m not regretting the fact that I’m going, exactly, but there are things making me nervous that I didn’t think would. _

 

_ At least since I’ve told everyone I’m going to a different school for my junior and senior year they’ve been nicer. Some of my friends have given me their numbers, but I kinda already feel like they’re becoming more distant. That’s fine with me. My anxiety’s pretty hard for my friends to deal with anyway, and it’ll make the transition easier. I just thought it’d be hard for them like it is for me, but I guess I’ll just have to suck it up. _

 

_ Sorry for being such a downer in this one, there’s just been some things on my mind about all of this, and I don’t want to worry my mom or sister or anything with it, and my friends are busy, so you’re all I’ve got. If you want, just ignore this and talk to me about lasagna. It just feels good to get this out of my system. Hopefully, things will turn around soon. As for you, what’s something you’re excited for at the Garrison? Once we’re there, do you think we can still keep our identities from each other and keep sending letters? It’d be reassuring, but I get it if that’s not something you want to keep up with. _

_ Sincerely, _

_ Yellow _

  
  


Dear Yellow,

Don’t worry about it, man. I’m cool if we keep talking, and it’ll be nice to have a friend there, even if I don’t know who you are exactly. I get the whole anxiety thing to some extent, don’t worry about that either. My nephew has it pretty bad, so my whole family’s done their best to help him out and take the time to learn about it. As for the Garrison, I hear they’ve got a pool near the rec rooms, so that’s a pleasant surprise, and maybe it’ll help you miss the ocean less? I know I’m grasping at straws and it’s pretty lame, but it’s all I’ve got. I have my own worries about this too. You’re not alone.

 

It’s kind of embarrassing to admit out loud, and easier on paper, but I’m gonna miss my family. A lot of guys my age tell me how much they hate their parents or their siblings or whatever, but they’re all I’ve got. I’m not a perfect kid, and even when my teachers say something about it, or the older kids tease me cause my accent slips when I get nervous about presentations or something, they don’t care because they all sound the same. My siblings have always told me I’m a mama’s boy, and yeah, that’s true, but I really will miss my mom. She’s the best, and no offense, nothing will ever taste as good as her homemade cookies.

 

I gotta sign in early because the airline doesn’t have cheap plane tickets closer to check in, so I can’t stay home and put off moving in for as long. I just don’t want to inconvenience them, since the Garrison’s already so pricey. I’ve got a little money from what scholarship they gave me, but my essay didn’t go as good as I would’ve liked. Sometimes I’m good with words, and sometimes I’m not, as you’ve probably noticed. Everyone says that still doesn’t stop me. I’m a nervous talker, what can I say? Some of the kids find it annoying and tell me to shut up, but there’s not much I can do about it. I can talk a lot better like this than I can in a research paper or something. It’s casual, so I don’t have to worry as much. 

 

By the way, by the time I get your next letter I’ll probably be at the Garrison, so if you could, could you send the number to the mailbox address they gave you? It’ll save my mom the trouble of getting more stamps. The post office really sucks with the kids, since she picks them up cause my sister’s still at work. Also, so I can know when to send mine to your box, when are you moving in?

From,

Blue

 

P.S. My letters are getting longer since school’s out and I have more time. I’ve looked back on a few of mine that my ESL teacher made me copy to watch my progress and check for errors, and there’s definitely more words here than when I started, so sorry for any extra mistakes. On the bright side, I should be able to have her proofread stuff at the Garrison if I send her a picture of my letter beforehand!

  
  


_ Dear Blue, _

_ It’s cool that you’d do that for your family. My moms are keeping me home for as long as they can, or at least that’s what they told me. Things are getting busy around here. I got a thing at the surf shop I go to the most for the rest of the time I’m here. It should be fun, and having a little spending money if the Garrison lets us go into town will be nice. As for moving in though, it’ll be a couple months for me, yet. August, probably.  _

 

_ There’s been a few sightings of sharks hanging around lately, and a lot of people are coming by to get some stuff done on their boards that’ll take longer to do since they can’t surf. One of my moms—she’s a big animal activist—is saying that the sharks really aren’t any danger, they’re not even a reportedly aggressive breed, but whatever. She can still go cliff diving, but I’m staying put. My other mom has already told her if she gets bitten by a shark she’s not allowed to show off the scar at block parties later, which she’s pretty disappointed about. I tried to explain it to the kids at robotics club, but they don’t have two moms or parents that argue about the aftereffects of shark attacks, so they can’t really relate. _

 

_ I’m penning this down in a lull during activity at the shop, but I gotta go because people are coming in again. I’m excited to start at the Garrison. I’ve talked to my moms about it and I’m feeling better about it now. Hopefully, we’ll meet there, even if we don’t know it. _

_ Sincerely,  _

_ Yellow _

  
  


Dear Yellow,

Your thing at the surf shop is really cool! I actually work an ice cream truck with a family friend—don’t ask me how that happened, my mom just kinda decided I was going to get a job, and offered me up—but that’s only a few days a week. Some of the stuff we sell is really good, like snow cones! I love snow cones. Blue is the best flavor, which my sister says is gross because it’s totally artificial, but she’s planning on getting plastic surgery so I don’t think she gets to complain much. Some of the popsicles get pretty creepy, though. I saw a Spongebob one the other day that looked a little possessed.

 

Speaking of possessed, my niece had friends over at our house a couple days before I left and they somehow got into my brother’s horror movies, so now my sister has a nine year old clinging frantically to her every night. She’s snatched the remainder of them and got into a fight with him over it that my mom had to break up. Unfortunately for him, he’s supposed to have them out of the kids’ reach in the first place since they’re over so much, so he lost that one.

 

I’m settled into the Garrison at this point. It’s fine, MREs suck, but there’s no lunch staff around right now so it’s what I’ve got. I’m just glad my mom sent me over with half a suitcase basically stuffed full with ramen noodles. I’ll hate them by the end of the summer, but I got a beef taco MRE once and I’m pretty sure a rat crawled into a tortilla and died there, so I’ll take it. It’s kinda lonely because I moved in so early, but writing to you is helping. I didn’t think I’d like this whole pen pal thing as much as I do when we first started, but you sound like a cool guy. I hope we become friends here.

From,

Blue

  
  


_ Dear Blue, _

_ Oh god, I don’t even want to think about MREs. One of my moms—anti cliff diving and shark bite display mom, not the animal activist one—used to be military, and sometimes she brings them up. I shudder at the thought. I’ve heard they stock some ingredients around the kitchen if students want to cook, but I bet they haven’t been updated since the end of the school year. Enjoy your ramen, and ignore your cholesterol. _

 

_ Oh my god, you wouldn’t believe what happened at the shop the other day. This dude came in saying he wanted to buy a board, but when we tried to show him what we had, he just got really mad. Apparently, he was looking for ironing boards, but why was he at a surf shop? We literally have a massive surfboard hanging over the door, but that’s none of my business. It makes a good story, at the very least. _

 

_ The sharks are gone and I’m back on the beach again before I have to leave. By the time you’ll get this, I’ll probably have moved in too. Sorry for the long wait between letters, things have been hectic. I hope you’ve found somebody else you like that’s moved in early, I’m sure you’ll have plenty of friends once the school year starts. You sound like the kind of guy who people like. I really do, anyhow. _

_ Sincerely, _

_ Yellow _

  
  


Dear Yellow,

As much as the summer sucked waiting around for everyone to show up, I’m not liking school as much as I thought I would. I meant to write you back, but my roommate moved in and we’ve been pretty busy. Can’t provide a lot of details though, he’s kinda nervous a lot of the time and I wouldn’t want to give anything away now that we’re actually in the same place. It’s not that I don’t like what we’re learning, it’s actually pretty cool, especially all the stuff about astronomy. I mean, it’s basically useless for real-world application and nothing as cool as a practical skill like coding or anything, but it’s interesting. The only thing is, the teacher’s don’t really adapt the material.

 

I mean yeah, we all have to learn the same stuff, but I’ve had dyslexia since, like, forever, and I like to have my tests read aloud to me, but I guess there’s no time for that here. Even a recording would do, but I asked a few teachers and they said since I’m here, I shouldn’t need special treatment. I’d push the topic more, but I think one of them caught my accent the other day cause I was talking to myself during a rough test, and it made them mad. I don’t want to push my luck. It makes sense, I guess, and I don’t want to bring it up around anybody since nobody else has the same issue, but it’s definitely bringing down my grades. Combined with the fact that the stuff here is already harder, I’m not sure. I definitely won’t get a good enough score to get me through the written test for fighter class. I guess there’s always next year, you know? I’ll try, but it’s still gonna suck when my name’s not on the list.

 

I’m sorry for the letter being such a downer, I just don’t have anybody that I really want to talk about it with verbally. My roommate’s a really, really cool guy, but he’s like, super smart, and I don’t want to bother him. I’ll make myself get around it, like everyone else, even if it sucks. How’s school treating you? I hope you like your engineering classes.

From,

Blue

  
  


_ Dear Blue, _

_ That’s so stupid! They should totally be willing to cater to that. Not that I think you’re lying or anything, and I get why reading would be hard, but I thought listening was one of the hardest things to pick up in a different language? I know it’s inconvenient, but it’s kinda cool that’s what’s hard for other people is easier for you and vice versa. I hope you can work it out, but if not, you know it’s okay to ask for help, right? I bet your roommate, if he’s as cool as you think he is, would be willing to help you make your case. _

 

_ Don’t count yourself out for fighter class just yet! The written stuff is tough and important and everything, but it’s not nearly as relevant as your actual flying ability. I’m sure if you work hard, and even if it’s not this year, you’ll make it. Lists come out in a few days for it anyway, so soon enough you won’t have to worry about it anymore regardless. _

 

_ I really love all my engineering stuff, it’s so cool and they have tech I never even though I’d be able to see, let alone mess with. The courses are super hard, but I’m learning a ton and it’s what I came here to do. The one thing I hate are the flight simulations. I know I have to get over it at some point, but I keep getting really, really nauseous on them. My pilot, a really cool guy and the best friend I’ve got here other than you, is always in control, but he likes to do tricks and stuff with it and my stomach isn’t ready for that. Hopefully, it gets better soon. Keep pushing for them to give you what you need to learn. I’ll fight them for you if that’s what it takes. _

_ Sincerely, _

_ Yellow _

  
  


Dear Yellow,

I didn’t get into fighter class. I knew it was going to happen, but it still sucks. Please just tell me something in response to this, something about your day or anything. It’d help a lot. Thanks.

From,

Blue

  
  


_ Dear Blue, _

_ I’m sorry, and I hope next year goes better for you. My roommate didn’t either, and he’s pretty sad about it too. He’s so confident and happy all the time, quick to crack a joke, it’s weird to see him so down in the dumps. He should be back to normal in a few days. _

 

_ With him like this, I really wish he had something like this. Just somebody to talk to like we can with each other. I can’t tell you how many times after a bad test or a rough day with the other kids here I’ve reread your letters and thought about how I can have someone here for me, even if there’s no face to go with what you write. He never gets letters, or if he does, he doesn’t tell me. I don’t even know his box number. _

 

_ You know, for a long time here I was worried I wouldn’t fit in. Some of the things I’ve jotted down here I’ve never told anybody else, and I think it’s because I want that sense of anonymity so badly. It’s a lot easier to admit that sometimes kids get on me because I’m bigger than most when there’s nobody to try and tell me that I’m not fat. The thing is, I am, and why the hell does that matter? I’m still me, and fat isn’t a bad thing. I just wish somebody would take the time of day to take into account that I can still be me even if I am big. I hope you feel better soon, Blue, and if you want, you don’t have to say anything else about this. You just needed me to say something, and today wasn’t the best I’ve ever had. It was going to come out one way or another to somebody, so I’m sorry if it makes you uncomfortable being that person. Feel better soon. I still mean it when I say I’ll fight for you. _

_ Sincerely, _

_ Yellow _

  
  


Dear Yellow,

Thank you. I know you kinda poured your heart out into that last letter and it was nothing you had to do, especially not for me, but the contact was what I needed. Good news! A new space opened up in fighter class for one reason or another, and even though I wasn’t good enough to get in normally, I’ve squeezed past now. It’s exactly what I wanted, and my mom’s gonna be really happy about it, so that’s cool.

 

The only thing is that one of the teachers for fighter class isn’t all that nice to me. I get it, I’m loud and obnoxious and I try to overcompensate for what I can’t do with talking, which I think really pisses him off, but still. He’s making things hard for me. I’m just happy I was finally able to work something out in most of my other classes. All I had to do was keep pushing for it, like you said, and eventually with a few calls from home they were able to get it done.

 

Today wasn’t great, the same teacher yelled at my whole team, but tonight should be fun. I’m thinking of getting my roommate to sneak out with me, and that’ll be cool. The town close by isn’t much, but it doesn’t have simulators and that’s all I’m asking for at this point. I might see if I can get one last guy, he’s on me and my roommates’ team for fighter class, to come with us, but I don’t know. He’s not super open to interaction outside of class.

 

Until later, I hope things get better for you around school. You’re totally right. Being fat doesn’t change a thing about you, you’re the coolest guy I know and always will be. You’re probably underselling yourself if we’re being honest because there’s no way a cool surfer dude like you can be anything less than a hunk.

From,

Blue


End file.
